From The Greeley Tribune (Chris Casey):
As Water and Sewer Director Jon Monson looks at the sizable footprint of Greeley’s future — the 2060 comprehensive plan has the city growing heavily to the north and west — “I need to look up the river quite a ways, a long time, to make sure that water will be there when people need it.”
At the center of this multi-layered planning are residents, upon whom cities rely to fund operations and storage projects. The typical Greeley household water bill is $45.83 a month, and that, if a planned water acquisition occurs, would rise about $30 per month over the next 10 years. By comparison, rates have climbed $8.85 per month, or 24 percent, since 2003. “The only place we get our money is the ratepayers. It’s basically an investment in our water future,” Monson said. “… To grow into this area (of the 2060 plan) with the lifestyle we’re accustomed to, or we want, Tree City USA, takes water. And the time to get that water is now, when it’s available and it’s relatively inexpensive.”[...]
Monson’s department would like to buy $90 million worth of water in the next six years. While that would help ensure the city’s needs for several decades, water rates would likely climb 84 percent in the next 10 years, or by $30 per single-family home per month. That’s compared to rates rising, if no additional water is bought, 47 percent in the next decade, or $17 per home. If the city added the $13 per month to water bills for the overall acquisition — the initial $30 million buy coming in the 2011-12 budget — rates would be in the upper third of Front Range cities if other cities do not change their rates during the 10-year period…
“We’re not making money,” Monson said. “We’re not a for-profit agency. We’re just covering our costs.” The department’s annual costs currently are $30.5 million, breaking down to about $12 million for operations, $11 million for debt service, $6 million for depreciation and a $1 million from the general fund.
Greeley is involved in numerous regional water storage and delivery projects, including the Haligan and Milton-Seaman reservoir expansions in the Poudre Canyon area, the Windy Gap Firming Project west of Loveland and the Bellvue Pipeline in Larimer County…
Also, Monson said, the city is dealing with critical water maintenance projects, including headgate repair and replacement at the Boyd and Freeman ditch, from the recent flooding; ongoing cement-lining installation in older, rusting pipes in downtown; outlet gate construction at Milton-Seaman reservoir; and centrifuge replacement at the wastewater treatment plant. All those elements — plus rising electrical and power costs and the regional water projects that cost into the millions in permitting alone — factor into water rates. In Greeley, Monson said, about a quarter of a household’s water bill goes to maintenance costs…
Also, he said, elusive future water supplies will likely be lower quality. Greeley is trying to secure as much source water as possible from close to the Poudre Canyon mouth. If the city waited until primary water sources flowed close to town, it would need to do expensive reverse-osmosis treatment and lose the natural down-gravity flow from the canyon.
More Greeley coverage here.
From the Pagosa Sun (Chuck McGuire):
In light of recent community unrest regarding future water planning and storage issues, the Pagosa Area Water and Sanitation District (PAWSD) Board of Directors asked that willing citizens step forward and assist in determining how best to assure long-term water supplies. By the June 9 meeting, 21 participants signed on, including local government officials, builders, Realtors, water experts and rate payers.
From the Pagosa Sun (Chuck McGuire):
Toward the end of another lengthy Pagosa Area Water and Sanitation District (PAWSD) Board of Directors meeting Tuesday night, some convincing community members moved what seemed an immovable object. As a result, the board suspended its construction-related Water Resource Fee (WRF) for six months.
More Pagosa Springs coverage here.
From The Telluride Watch (Gus Jarvis):
“We hope to have a permit in our hands inside 15 months,” Tri-County General Manager Mike Berry said at Monday’s Ouray Board of County Commissioner meeting in Ouray. “At that point in time, we will start designing this project.”
According to Berry, two weeks ago the federal Bureau of Reclamation issued a federal register announcement calling for applications, which are due by December. The process is open to anyone and is intended to be an open and competitive process. After the deadline, it could take the Bureau of Reclamation anywhere from three to six months to select an applicant and then complete negotiations for a permit…
“The size of the plant will be somewhere between 1.8 and 2.5 megawatts, depending on how we can configure the construction of it,” Berry said, adding that the cost of the hydroelectric plant could be anywhere from $9 million to $15 million. “We are still talking about exactly what we [would] build.”
If Tri-County is ultimately awarded a permit, Berry said it is the utility’s intent to run the plant on historical flows to “minimize the environmental impact” and to continue to maintain the Uncompahgre River’s water flow in similar form as it has in the past. “We are primarily responsible to provide water and irrigation down stream,” Tri-County Boardmember Frank Starr said. “So we will not alter the release of water in order to create power.”
Energy policy — nuclear: The Sheep Mountain Alliance is taking a close look at the Piñon Ridge Mill application
June 18, 2010
From The Telluride Watch (Karen James):
Throughout a long public process concerning the approval of what could be the nation’s first new uranium mill constructed in nearly three decades, project supporters have largely rejected arguments made by opponents as being overly emotional and lacking in sound, scientific substance.
But that criticism may have lost some of its sting last week when scientists hired by local environmental group Sheep Mountain Alliance to examine parts of a 15-volume radioactive materials license application submitted to state regulators last fall by Energy Fuels Resources Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of the Toronto-based Energy Fuels Inc., presented their findings during two public meetings held in Telluride and Ophir…
A solution of sulfuric acid would be used to leach the desired metals from the ore, leaving behind a waste solution containing concentrated levels of heavy metals like arsenic, cadmium, chromium, and lead that would then be piped into lined evaporation ponds for containment. “You don’t want anything to come in contact with this,” [Jamie Holmes, managing scientist with the Boulder, Colo.-based environmental consulting firm Stratus Consulting that studied hydrological issues at the proposed Piñon Ridge mill site said. “You don’t want it in the groundwater, in surface water, you don’t want any wildlife coming in contact with it.” Historically, however, linings have leaked, and net systems designed to prevent wildlife interaction with the toxic sludge have failed. “Our biggest concern is that they will generate toxic waste, not control it properly and then leave it to taxpayers to clean up,” Holmes said. “That is a recurrent problem in this industry,” he continued, referring specifically to heavy metal mining and milling.
Colorado-Big Thompson Project update
June 18, 2010
From email from Reclamation (Kara Lamb):
We’ve continued to drop releases from Green Mountain Reservoir to the Lower Blue over the past few days. It is likely, we will continue to drop through the weekend, as well. Inflows to the reservoir have been dropping and we are keeping pace. Today, the Lower Blue is flowing at just under 1200 cfs.
More Colorado-Big Thompson coverage here.
The Woodmoor Water and Santiation District purchases additional ag water rights on the Holbrook Canal
June 18, 2010
From The Pueblo Chieftain (Chris Woodka):
Woodmoor, located north of Colorado Springs on the Douglas-El Paso county line, has approved spending almost $10 million this year for the purchase of water rights on the High Line, Excelsior and Holbrook ditch systems east of Pueblo. On Monday, its board approved spending another $1.7 million to buy 931.7 shares of the Holbrook Canal, about 5.8 percent of the ditch. Each share irrigates an acre. “We expect the yield to be about 800 acre-feet annually,” [Jessie Shaffer, manager of the district] said.
Earlier this year, the Woodmoor board voted to buy 47.8 shares of the High Line Canal, roughly 2 percent of the ditch. Each share irrigates 10 acres. The cost was a little more than $2 million, with an expected yield of about 700 acre-feet. The board also voted to buy part of the Stonewall Springs reservoir site and 771 shares of the Excelsior Ditch in Pueblo County for $5.85 million. That is expected to yield 380 acre-feet. “If everything goes through, we would be right at $10 million in assets,” Shaffer said. That works out to about $3,000 for each of the 3,300 taps in the district. Water users now pay a base fee of $6.81, with charges from $4.91 to $14.18 per gallon on a tiered scale that charges more per gallon as more water is used.
More Arkansas Basin coverage here.
From the Associated Press via the Fort Collins Coloradoan:
Colorado’s governor on Tuesday announced that a group of river rafters and a real estate developer who didn’t want paddlers floating by his property reached a four-year agreement…
The developer’s move [to close a certain reach of the Taylor River] prompted an intense debate over who owns riverways in Colorado, where tourists flock in summers to ride some of the West’s best freshwater rapids. The developer said that rafting trips would disturb a fishing preserve…
A state lawmaker from Gunnison tried and failed to protect rafting rights in a bill considered last session. After the bill failed, both sides vowed to seek ballot initiatives to put the question to voters, and 24 separate questions have been proposed. The four-year agreement announced Tuesday calls for both sides to agree to recall those proposals. Ritter hailed the decision to withdraw the flurry of ballot proposals “courageous.”
However, the “right to float” question isn’t settled. The agreement applies only to the stretch of the Taylor River in dispute, leaving unanswered the question of whether property owners with public rivers on their land can prevent paddlers, even if the rafters don’t stop on privately owned banks. “I do believe it needs to be addressed,” [Matt Brown, an owner of Scenic River Tours] said of permanent floating rights…
Ritter said he’s set up a panel of landowners, commercial and recreational river users and even police to propose a statewide procedure for settling river disputes. The report is due by the end of the year, in time for lawmakers to consider permanent rafting rules next session.
More whitewater coverage here.
Colorado-Big Thompson Project operations update
June 18, 2010
From email from Reclamation (Kara Lamb):
Due to the recent high-rate of snowmelt run-off, we thought it would be best to provide folks in and around the area of Lake Granby some information about possible operations at Granby Dam later this month. With the elevated inflows we continue to see at Lake Granby, it is very likely we will fill the reservoir by the last weekend of June. Once the reservoir is full, inflow will be bypassed on downstream using both the outlet at the dam and the spillway. The last time we utilized the spillway to bypass inflow was in the year 2000.
More Colorado-Big Thompson project coverage here.
EPA proposes removal of more than 2,500 acres at Rocky Mountain Arsenal from Superfund list
June 18, 2010
Here’s the release from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (Jennifer Chergo):
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced a proposal to delete portions of the Rocky Mountain Arsenal (RMA) from the National Priorities List (NPL). The NPL is a list of the nation’s most contaminated sites, known as Superfund sites. EPA and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment have determined that all required cleanup activities are complete in the areas proposed for deletion. EPA is accepting public comments on the Notice of Intent to Delete for 30 days, from June 17 to July 19, 2010.
EPA is proposing to delete 2,500 acres of soil, sediment, surface water and structures from the central and eastern surface areas within the RMA boundaries. EPA is also proposing to delete the entire surface area just north of the RMA boundary. Groundwater underlying these areas is not included in this deletion and will remain on the NPL. All areas at RMA deleted from the NPL will continue to be subject to regular EPA review to ensure the protection of human health and the environment.
Deleting property from the NPL facilitates reuse of that property. Should the proposed deletion of the central and eastern surface area be finalized, its 2,500 acres will be transferred to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to become part of the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge.
This is the fifth proposed partial deletion of land at RMA. Between 2003 and 2006, EPA completed four partial deletions consisting of 13,406 acres. Of the property deleted at RMA to date, 917 acres were sold to Commerce City for commercial development, 12 acres were transferred to South Adams County Water and Sanitation District for the Klein Treatment Facility, 126 acres were transferred to local governments for road-widening, and 163 acres were retained by the Army, primarily for water treatment systems. Another 12,188 acres were transferred to the FWS to become part of the National Wildlife Refuge, as prescribed in the 1992 Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge Act.
RMA is located in Commerce City, approximately ten miles northeast of Denver, Colo., in Adams County. RMA was established in 1942 by the U.S. Army to manufacture chemical warfare agents and munitions for use in World War II. Beginning in 1946, some facilities were leased to private companies to manufacture industrial and agricultural chemicals. Shell Oil Company, the principal lessee, manufactured pesticides at the site from 1952 to 1982. Industrial and waste disposal practices resulted in contamination of structures, soil, surface water and groundwater. EPA placed RMA on the NPL in 1987. Since that time, the site has been undergoing extensive environmental investigation and cleanup.
For more information, visit: http://www.epa.gov/region8/superfund/co/rkymtnarsenal/
More superfund coverage here.
Water conservation and future Colorado demand
June 18, 2010
From the Grand Junction Free Press (Greg Trainor):
One of the key components of future water supply planning is water conservation. This is among other approaches that either create new water (like cloud seeding), capture existing water (like more reservoirs to hold back excess water in times like this spring), or transfer water from one use to another use.
It has been estimated that transfers of water from agriculture to the cities could result in 65 percent of Colorado’s irrigated agriculture disappearing by 2050. Is the demise of irrigated agriculture something we as Colorado residents wish to see? And, with agriculture gone, what would we eat?[...]
Water conservation, in its broadest sense, is anything that stretches water supplies. The idea is to keep water, which you already have, in place, and not use it until you absolutely have to. This happens in a number of ways like installing water efficient appliances, not running water while brushing your teeth, replacing lawns with xeric landscaping, or making improvements to water distribution systems by repairing leaks. So water conservation seems like something we can do to stretch our supplies without too much inconvenience or discomfort. Keep in mind that every acre foot saved should be used to make up for shortages in precipitation during times of drought, and not used to supply water to future population increases. To do so only puts us into a deeper hole when drought does occur. Less water, but more people with nothing to drink…
In 2004, the Colorado Water Conservation Board established steps for the development of a comprehensive conservation plan and water providers are required to address each of the following elements:
•Characterize water use and forecast demand
•Profile proposed facilities
•Identify conservation goals
•Identify conservation measures and programs
•Evaluate and select conservation measures and programs
•Integrate resources and modify forecasts
•Develop implementation plan
•Monitor, evaluate and revise conservation activities and the conservation plan[...]
Grand Junction, Ute Water Conservancy District and Clifton Water District have been working on many other cooperative efforts to ensure the Grand Valley is protected in times of shortages. For example, the three systems are interconnected. If there is a water shortage for one entity, it is considered a shortage for the others. Crews train together as well as have the authority to open up valves to supply water from other areas of the system…
For more information on area water conservation efforts, visit the Drought Information Response Project website at www.thedripwebsite.com.
More conservation coverage here.
Runoff news: A look ahead at operating the Arkansas River Voluntary Flow Program this summer
June 18, 2010
From The Pueblo Chieftain (Chris Woodka):
“At some point this summer, we are going to ask to exceed the releases of 10,000 acre-feet,” Tony Keenan of the Arkansas River Outfitters Association told the Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District Thursday.
The releases are made under a 1990 voluntary flow management program among several local, state and federal agencies. It allows Fryingpan-Arkansas Project water and other supplies from Turquoise and Twin lakes to be released into the Arkansas River at strategic times to maintain flows for recreation through mid-August and for fish and wildlife during the winter months.
This year, flows surged in late May and early June and temperatures rose and began to melt snow in the mountains. Already, the flows are dropping. “We have about half of what we had in the river 10 days ago,” said Steve Witte, Water Division 2 engineer. The Upper Arkansas River was flowing at about 2,300 cubic feet per second this week, down from more than 5,000 cfs earlier. The flow program calls for a target level of 700 cfs through Aug. 15.
While the program is capped at 10,000 acre-feet of releases, more has been released in the past, if the timing can benefit the Fry-Ark Project, or the needs of big water users like Pueblo, Colorado Springs and Aurora. “I think the water is going to be plentiful, it’s space that concerns us,” said Roy Vaughan, manager of the Fry-Ark Project for the Bureau of Reclamation. For the past two years, space in Lake Pueblo has been tight in the spring, meaning water stored by some users could spill. About one-third of the water in Lake Pueblo now is either excess-capacity or winter water. The lake level is about 131 percent of average. “We could be looking at the same problem next year,” Vaughan said, citing graphs that show Lake Pueblo inflows are running ahead of last year’s supplies.
At the same time, Reclamation is trying to make enough space in Turquoise and Twin lakes to contain water being brought in through the Fry-Ark Project. Projections for water this year are at about 56,000 acre-feet, slightly above average. So far, about 41,000 acre-feet have come over. “We’ve already lost some yield because of the hard runoff,” Vaughan said. When the Boustead Tunnel was carrying its maximum of 945 cfs of water, about 800 cfs was flowing into the Roaring Fork River at the tunnel’s diversion point on the other side of the mountains.
More Arkansas River Basin coverage here.
From The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel:
[White River National Forest] engineers said the agency may not know for several weeks just how much damage occurred as a result of recent accelerated snowmelt that resulted from high temperatures. Meanwhile, the public is being urged to be careful when approaching bridges, especially those having significant accumulation of debris on piers and footings. Such accumulation has been spotted on several bridges and may have caused structural damage requiring significant repairs. People also are asked to report any damage to the Forest Service as soon as possible. The forest’s supervisor, Scott Fitzwilliams, said in a news release, “Flood-damaged infrastructure will be costly to repair but we are committed to doing so as funding becomes available.” Officials got their first idea of the possible damages sustained on the forest when a hiker reported last week that the Lower Cross Creek Bridge in the Holy Cross Wilderness Area near Vail had been washed out.
Aspinall Unit update
June 17, 2010
From email from Reclamation (Dan Crabtree):
For those of you keeping a close eye on the flow in the Black Canyon and Gunnison Gorge, there have been some minor fluctuations the last few days as the Uncompahgre Valley Water Users increased diversions to the Gunnison Tunnel to its maximum capacity. Flows should remain stable until conditions warrant further change.
More Aspinall Unit coverage here.
Crawford: Water tank maintenance complete
June 17, 2010
From the Delta County Independent (Kathy Browning):
The two water storage tanks for the Town of Crawford have been inspected, cleaned, maintained and repaired. The tanks were never drained. The work was done June 5-7. Bruce Bair, public works director, told the town council on June 2 that the work for the repairs would take just three days instead of the estimated three and a half days. That realized a $1,000 savings for the town. Inland Potable Services of Centennial, Colorado, did all the work. The original estimate for maintenance and repairs was $10,325. The final bill was just $9,350.
More infrastructure coverage here.
Denver Water: Dredging project for Strontia Springs Reservoir will close Waterton Canyon for a year
June 17, 2010
Here’s the release from Denver Water (Stacy Chesney):
Denver Water’s Strontia Springs Reservoir contains more than one million cubic yards of sediment — a result of forest fires and subsequent intense rains over the years. Increased sediment creates reservoir operational challenges and causes water quality issues that impact the functions of the Foothills and Marston water treatment plants. As a result, a Denver Water contractor will dredge the reservoir to remove at least 625,000 cubic yards of sediment — enough to fill the football field at Invesco to a height of more than 200 feet.
This large-scale project will require heavy machinery and equipment. To ensure the safety of those who recreate in the area, Waterton Canyon will be closed to the public for a number of months in 2010 and 2011 while the majority of the work takes place.
Waterton Canyon will be closed as follows:
* Monday, Aug. 2, 2010 until Sunday, Dec. 3, 2010
* Monday, Feb. 28, 2011 until Saturday, Dec. 31, 2011Neither the parking lot at the canyon’s entrance nor the canyon will be accessible during the closure. Some contractor activity will precede this date but there will be flaggers to caution the public during July.
Access to The Colorado Trail (CT) from Waterton Canyon also will be closed during these times. The next closest access to CT Segment 1 is via the Indian Creek Trailhead on CO Hwy 67, 10.5 miles west of Sedalia (see www.ColoradoTrail.org).
“We understand that Waterton Canyon is a very popular recreation site for people of all ages, and we know some will be inconvenienced by this closure,” said Neil Sperandeo, manager of recreation for Denver Water. “When the full scope of the project was completed, it was determined it would be unsafe to leave the canyon open during construction. We hope to make the canyon even better for recreation when it reopens in 2012.”
For questions related to recreation, e-mail recreation@denverwater.org.
More Denver Water coverage here.
From the Delta County Independent (Hank Lohmeyer):
During a presentation at the town board’s June 9 regular meeting, the mayor and town administrator detailed their trials with being told to pay over $2,000 for protection of endangered fish in the Gunnison and Colorado rivers, and of being told that a local irrigation ditch is a protected historical artifact. The requirements are among dozens of stipulations that must be fulfilled as part of the Environmental Assessment (EA) process required on the project. Many of the stipulations have no bearing on the town’s water project but must be addressed anyway. The EA is a federal mandate. It is intended to be a simpler and quicker way of looking at possible impacts on government funded projects than a full Environmental Impact Statement would require. The regulations kick in because some wetlands may be disturbed during replacement of the town’s leaky water transmission line. That requires a federal Army Corps of Engineers permit which immediately triggers the EA process…
The Colorado State Historical Society came back with the comment that the project, which will replace an existing 40-year-old water line, threatens to disrupt a pair of “known” protected historical artifacts — the Green Valley Mine and the Childs Ditch. After the Historical Society’s letter arrived at town hall and all the guffawing it produced had subsided, town officials got busy dealing with the ridiculous regulatory regimen they were about to be saddled with…
For the mayor’s part, he got on the telephone to the State Historical Society. Explaining to the Society that neither the old mine works nor the irrigation ditch need historical surveys costing $5,500 to $7,500, he said he was able to get an agreement. With a promise from the Society for approval and “a quick turnaround,” the town was sending a letter last week asking for release from having to pay the thousands of dollars for a historical survey on the mine and the ditch.
Another regulatory snafu was handled by the trustees themselves. It was described by the mayor using serious language and dark terminology to say the town was being forced to pay under duress.
That problem involves yet more federal regulations that link Orchard City’s water line replacement project to endangered fish in the Gunnison and Colorado rivers – the razorback sucker, the Colorado pikeminnow (formerly known as the Colorado squawfish), the bonytail chub, and the humpback chub. The answer to solving the regulatory problem with the town’s pipeline project, to ensuring the town’s future domestic water supplies, and to protecting the fish, it turns out, can all be accomplished at once with a single check in the amount of $2,278 made out to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The mayor balked, describing the offer as a thinly-veiled, pay me now-or pay me later proposition. But, the town trustees relented, and voted 6-0 to pay the feds now instead of later.
More infrastructure coverage here.
Brush: New stormwater fees go into effect in July
June 17, 2010
From the Brush News-Tribune (Jesse Chaney):
Effective July 1, the Brush storm-water fee will increase by an additional three cents per month for each linear foot of property that touches a public street equipped with a curb and gutter.
The Brush City Council unanimously approved a motion on Monday to increase the rate from 13 to 16 cents per linear foot. The city will use the extra fees to help repair parts of the city’s storm-water system, said Brush Administrator Monty Torres. The system is failing in several parts of town, he said, and the downtown area is currently the city’s top priority. Torres said the downtown storm-water system replacement project is expected to cost about $1.5 million.
More stormwater coverage here.
From The Aspen Daily News (Catherine Lutz):
For the third time in 25 years, the upper Colorado, from its headwaters in Rocky Mountain National Park to its confluence with the Roaring Fork River in Glenwood Springs, has made American Rivers’ top 10 list of most endangered rivers, which was released earlier this month. The nonprofit cited water diversions as the main threat to the upper Colorado, the central artery of a major ecosystem and a recreational gold mine for fishing, rafting and kayaking. After more than 100 years of diversions that have collectively degraded the river’s health, two major proposed diversion projects that would take water from the Western Slope to Front Range reservoirs could make it even worse, American Rivers’ report said.
Federal authorities are currently considering the expansion of the two diversion systems. The water authority governing the Windy Gap Firming Project, which transports water from a pipeline near Granby to the Front Range, wants to build a new reservoir that would take about 28,000 additional acre-feet of water per year across the Continental Divide. And the Boulder-area reservoir that’s on the receiving end of the Moffat Tunnel Collection System, which takes water from the Winter Park area, is proposed to be enlarged and would use an extra 18,000 acre-feet…
Another reason everyone should care about the upper Colorado’s issues is that it’s an example of what could happen in other watersheds, said [Ken Neubecker of Carbondale]. The Roaring Fork River, for example, already has the third and fifth largest transmountain diversions in the state: the Fry-Ark Project, which takes water from the upper Fryingpan River, and the Independence Pass Transmountain Diversion Project, which collects water for Twin Lakes from the headwaters of the Roaring Fork River…
…water quality is another issue people need to be concerned about if the increased diversions are approved. The water taken from the Winter Park and Granby areas is closer to the headwaters of the Colorado, and thus clean and pure. Further downstream, the river has picked up sediment, salts and other pollutants. And the more salts in the water the harder it is, said Neubecker…
Both diversion projects are currently making their way through a federal environmental analysis process, and various interested parties throughout the state are in negotiations over what the final projects will look like. Some environmental groups lately have been invited to the negotiating table, and the Glenwood Springs-based Colorado River Water Conservation District (CRWCB) is involved in the talks. Movement toward a final decision could happen sometime this year…
Neubecker, who is not involved in the process, said he doesn’t believe either water authority behind the two projects is looking at the cumulative impacts of their proposals. He added that Front Range diverters need to first “recognize that there is a problem,” and then accept an adaptive management strategy that would allow the river to get the flows it needs at certain times of the year to maintain its riparian health. He also said he wants to be able to revisit whatever agreement is reached in the next decade or so, in case some of the assumptions are wrong and it’s not working…
But CRWCB spokesman Jim Pokrandt said he sees hope in that Western Slope entities are more involved in talks than they had been before.“The good news is there are negotiations with the two projects that could provide improvements for the river, and can be a win-win for everybody,” he said.
More Colorado River Basin coverage here.
Runoff news
June 17, 2010
From The Pueblo Chieftain (Nick Bonham):
Restrictions were lifted Wednesday for boaters and tubers on the Arkansas River downstream from the Pueblo Dam. The rush of winter runoff from the mountains last week caused local officials to put recreation restrictions on the river’s high and dangerous water levels. “The water flows have dropped off significantly and the river is now open for all types of boating,” Monique Mullis, operations manager at Lake Pueblo State Park, said in a press release.
2010 Colorado elections
June 17, 2010
There has been a bit of controversy around Scott McInnis’ fellowship with the Hassan Family Foundation and the series of articles on land use and water that he contracted with the foundation to write. He made reference to the series on a recent radio program but no one had copies of the articles to distribute to the media. Ed Quillen mentioned the writing gig in his column in The Denver Post on June 3 asking, “Who is the best-paid writer in Colorado?” The answer:
Scott McInnis, a Republican candidate for governor. He received approximately $150,000 from the Hassan Family Foundation, for which, as he explained on a radio program, “I wrote a series of in-depth articles on water” that “could be used in a series for education on water in Colorado.”
I follow water stuff fairly closely, and I never saw the work. Jason Salzman, former media critic for the Rocky Mountain News, talked to everybody who might have reasonably encountered this hydrologic epic, and came up empty; McInnis’ office did not respond to his questions.
So $150,000 divided by zero disseminated words works out to something like infinity. Thus, Scooter must be the best-paid writer in our state. And if he doesn’t get elected governor, I want to engage him as my literary agent, since he knows how to cut some sweet deals.
Over the weekend the foundation posted (http://www.hasanfamilyfoundation.com/PDF/mcinnis.pdf) the articles. I read through them yesterday evening and all in all they are a good read. Of course readers understand that I’m a bit obsessed with Colorado water issues so I like a lot of arcane stuff. There are no sources cited for the most part so its hard to know the accuracy of his facts. He’s consistent in his message, bashing government and the Bureau of Reclamation specifically. He embraces the development of water and other resources and laments all the possible mineral mother lodes locked up by wilderness designation. He demonstrates a good understanding of water issues and the history behind Colorado’s present situation.
More 2010 Colorado elections coverage here.
From the Colorado Independent (Scot Kersgaard):
Not everyone is happy about this. Buena Vista and Salida have birthed a protest movement that has been more noisy than effective. By some estimates, 80 percent of the roughly 17,000 people in Chaffee County are opposed to this diversion of water. Still, when it came time to issue permits, the three-member Board of County Commissioners was unanimous in approving Nestle’s plans. In the end, it was probably a combination of fear and Old-West style property rights values that carried the day for Nestle.
Commissioner Tim Glenn, the lone Democrat on the board, told a local reporter “Out and out denial of the permit… well you know what would’ve happened… we would have been sued.”
Commission Chair Frank Holman, on the other hand, thinks the Nestle deal is good for the county. “It is a good thing,” he said. “The county will get 12 to 15 new full-time truck driver jobs out of this. And those jobs are sorely needed,” he said…
Holman plays down concerns. He said that most of the water Nestle will be draining away would have flowed directly into the Arkansas, so the Aurora augmentation water more than makes up for what will be piped to Johnson Village and poured into trucks. He adds that the deal is now a matter of private property rights. Nestle now owns the land where the water originates, he said, and the company has leased the augmentation water to replace the water its carting away, so Nestle is well within its rights. “Nestle is a good neighbor,” he said. “They are giving us money to help with schools. They are creating a conservation easement on their land. And they are creating river access for fishermen.” Nestle has given $500,000 to two local school districts as an endowment from which the districts can spend the interest or earnings. The company has verbally promised to create a conservation easement on most of the land it has purchased, but no easement has yet been recorded…
Nestle is paying Aurora $160,000 a year for the water. The amount paid increases 5 percent a year for the first 10 years of the lease. After 10 years, Nestle has the option of requesting a second 10-year term. If Aurora agrees, the price will increase 3 percent a year for the final 10 years. Nestle can break the agreement at any time. Aurora can only break the deal if it can demonstrate that it needs the water for its own uses. The Aurora City Council voted 7 to 4 to approve this deal last year.
“The thing that gets me most fired up,” said Graham, “is how illogical it is to take our water, pipe it five miles to a truck plant, send 25 trucks of it to Denver every day, and then put it in plastic bottles. Considering that anyone can just turn a tap in their home and get the same water. It is just absurd.”
More Nestlé Waters North America’s Chaffee County Project coverage here and here.
Rafting rift settlement
June 16, 2010
Here’s the release from Governor Ritter’s office:
Gov. Bill Ritter announced today an agreement has been reached between commercial rafting outfitters and private property owners along the Taylor River. The compromise clears the way for sponsors of 24 competing ballot measures to withdraw their respective proposals from the November ballot, averting an expensive and divisive election fight.
The Governor had asked two outfitters, Three Rivers and Scenic River Tours, and the owners of the Jackson-Shaw property, in May to find a mutually agreeable solution to their dispute.
Gov. Ritter thanked the parties for their hard work and willingness to find common ground. “To reach this accord, both sides had to make difficult concessions, and I appreciate their willingness to do so,” the Governor said. “Today’s agreement marks an important step toward opening a dialogue between landowners and rafters. My hope is that this dialogue will then lead to a fair and efficient dispute-resolution process for the future.
“Colorado’s rivers are essential to all Coloradans, not only for the vital drinking and agricultural water they carry, but also to our overall economy and quality of life,” said Gov. Ritter, who is an avid fly-fisherman. “Anglers, rafters and private landowners may all have separate and unique interests, but they all share a common Colorado interest that is bound together by doing what’s best for our children and the future of our state.
“I also applaud the decision of the sponsors to withdraw their ballot initiatives,” Gov. Ritter added. “The decision of these parties to withdraw these ballot measures was courageous and puts the interests of all Coloradans above their individual interests.”
Said Lewis Shaw, chairman and CEO of Jackson-Shaw Co., which owns the Wilder on the Taylor fishing reserve: “We are pleased to announce a resolution to the dispute on the Taylor River involving commercial rafting and private fishing property. Gov. Ritter has offered much-appreciated guidance to both parties to reach this settlement privately, avoiding possible contentious legislative initiatives or impositions. The agreement permits rafting companies Three Rivers and Scenic River Tours structured access through the private Wilder Ranch property while respecting each parties’ positions for their mutual enjoyment of this beautiful natural resource.”/p>
“Over the years, Colorado’s property owners and rafters around the state, working on a case-by-case basis, have found ways to accommodate each other,” said John Leede, president of the Creekside Coalition, which represents about 600 riparian landowners across Colorado. “We believe this long-standing approach has served Colorado well by balancing the needs of various interests. Our ballot issues were introduced to protect against legislative and ballot proposals from the commercial rafting community that we believed were one sided and would have disrupted the delicate balance between rafters, fisherman and property owners across the state. We are appreciative of the Governor’s leadership in resolving this issue and we will continue to participate constructively in future discussions around these issues.”
The withdrawal of the ballot measures also clears the way for the creation of a task force that will propose a dispute-resolution process to address future conflicts on Colorado rivers.
Gov. Ritter will convene a task force of stakeholders to develop a proposal for resolving conflicts among landowners, anglers and the boating public. The task force will be charged with developing a framework for resolving disputes on Colorado rivers on a stretch-by-stretch basis as those disputes arise. This approach recognizes that disputes vary from place to place and that a one-size-fits-all strategy is unlikely to succeed.
The task force will be led by the Department of Natural Resources and the Governor’s Office. The task force will include representatives from landowners, commercial and recreational river users, local government officials and law enforcement, which has historically been tasked with intervening in such disputes.
The task force will be asked to deliver a report outlining its proposal to the Governor by Dec. 31.
More HB 10-1188 (State Representative Kathleen Curry’s bill to clarify navigation rights) coverage for background on the rift here. More background on the proposed ballot issues for this fall’s elections here.
2010 Colorado elections
June 16, 2010
The three gubernatorial hopefuls were in Pueblo yesterday, according to a report from Peter Roper writing for The Pueblo Chieftain. From the article:
One of them will be elected governor in November, which is why Republicans Scott McInnis and Dan Maes, along with Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper came to Pueblo on Tuesday to woo Southern Colorado voters…
“You don’t just now learn about water,” McInnis declared to the audience of about 150 listeners, a reference to Maes saying that his past year of campaigning had taught him how important and complicated the issue is in Colorado…
On protecting rural water, the Denver mayor said conservation would be important, claiming his city had cut its per capita consumption by 20 percent.
McInnis had a bolder view, saying Colorado should pursue obtaining water rights in the massive Flaming Gorge Reservoir in Wyoming and piping it to Front Range cities, taking the pressure off Colorado river basins, such as the Arkansas River.
Maes said that as diverting water from the Western Slope to the Front Range was always a difficult subject, but he said that if conservation efforts were not enough, “that conversation needs to take place.”
More coverage from Joe Hanel writing for The Durango Herald. From the article:
Republicans Dan Maes and Scott McInnis and Democrat John Hickenlooper showed differences over water, oil and gas and their styles of politics when talking to the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association and Action 22, an advocacy group for Southeast Colorado. Colorado’s water crisis is most acute in the Arkansas Valley, and both groups asked the candidates to address water.
Maes said Colorado has plenty of water, but it needs to be trapped in reservoirs before it leaves the state. Because water belongs to the whole state, transfers from the Western Slope to Pueblo, for example, would be appropriate after the eastern cities have made “good faith efforts” to conserve water. But Maes told the cattlemen’s group that western Coloradans do not need to be threatened. “I say it in Pueblo County, and I say it in Montezuma County: Not a head of cattle or a field of crops will want for water because they need it for a green lawn in Denver,” said Maes, who ran a credit-reporting business in Evergreen.
McInnis said he thinks the best solution is a 400-mile pipeline from Southwest Wyoming to the Front Range, proposed by Aaron Million. “That project, the Million project, in my opinion is a long-term answer to the water needs,” said McInnis, a former congressman for the 3rd Congressional District that covers the west half of the state. In 2007, McInnis registered briefly as a lobbyist for Million’s company, Million Conservation Resource Group, according to records kept by Congress.
Hickenlooper, the Denver mayor, did not offer a specific project. Instead, he said the first task is to build trust and understanding around the state. It might take 20 years to get the Million pipeline built, and he cast doubt of Maes’ suggestion of a Western Slope water transfer to Pueblo. “That would never happen without a higher level of trust than we have right now,” Hickenlooper said.
More 2010 Colorado elections coverage here.
Salida: FIBArk events Thursday through Sunday
June 16, 2010
From The Pueblo Chieftain (Tracy Harmon):
Snowmelt continues to buoy the river flow around 3,000 cubic feet per second which should make for some exciting finishes in the river events. Events kick off from 7 to 9 a.m. Thursday with a pancake breakfast in downtown Salida followed by a 10 a.m. Pine Creek Boater X rafting event…
The 62nd annual event is sponsored by New Belgium Brewing, maker of Fat Tire Amber Ale, making it a must for the brewing company to enter a floatable craft in the Hooligan race slated for 5:30 p.m. Saturday just upstream of the F Street Bridge. “The whimsical factor of FIBArks hooligan craft race is just off the charts — there is nothing like it,” said Shawn Hines of New Belgium Brewing. “We’ll have a homemade boat that we’ll enter and cross our fingers that it keeps us all dry.”
From The Mountain Mail (Arlene Shovald):
Former downriver champion Erich Seidel will be inducted into the FIBArk Hall of Fame during the Heart of the Rockies Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours from 5-7 p.m. Wednesday at Salida SteamPlant. Seidel won the downriver competition in 1953 when the FIBArk celebration was 5 years old. Seidel died in 2003 and his family will receive the honors posthumously on his behalf. His children, Tom Seidel and Christina Seidel-Harrison and grandson Craig Harrison will be in Salida for the ceremony Wednesday. “The family was proud and honored to learn of Erich’s induction into the FIBArk Hall of Fame,” Craig Harrison said. “Erich’s kids, Christina and Tom, both have kayaked casually and Tom competed in the FIBArk Juniors in the early 1970s.” Seidel, a German kayaker, was sponsored by Klepper when he came to Salida in 1953. He worked in Munich, Germany, and in New York for Klepper, primarily as a sales representative.
In 1953 he and a friend, Theo Bock, set up the first slalom course on the Arkansas River to demonstrate gate running and thus introduced that aspect to FIBArk and whitewater sports in America. Seidel and his wife, Helga, moved to Salida in 1954. He and his friend, Xavier Wuerfmannsdobler, explored and paddled rivers of the west and together influenced many local paddlers, among them Eric Frazee who, at 17, represented the United States in the World Champion Slalom in Germany in 1957. Seidel’s name lived on in the Salida area long after he quit competing, because of an event one spring when he made the first successful descent through Brown’s Canyon and fell into a huge hole. His Foldboat was ruined, but he escaped and today the name Seidel’s Suck Hole continues as a dreaded rapid. Seidel had a home in Maysville for awhile, then moved to New York and eventually returned to Germany where he continued kayaking until he was in his early 60s. His former wife was the only person in the family to see him compete at FIBArk, but his son, Tom, has been in Salida almost every year for the festivities and the rest of the family has been here several times. They said they and are delighted to be present for the ceremony Wednesday honoring Erich.
More whitewater coverage here.
Southern Delivery System: Negotiations between Colorado Springs Utilities and Reclamation hit cost snag
June 16, 2010
From The Pueblo Chieftain (Chris Woodka):
“The proposal you provided to us is unacceptable. It sounds arbitrary and capricious,” John Fredell, SDS project director, told Reclamation’s negotiating team. “Clearly you did not recognize that as in-basin users, we want to be treated fairly.”[...]
One of those [Colorado Springs Utilities] ratepayers, Walter Lawson, chided Reclamation for not revealing the whole cost to Colorado Springs, and said Reclamation is trying to “extort” money from Colorado Springs…
The morning session of negotiations centered on contract terms, as Reclamation rejected about 25 proposed changes. Most of those centered on Colorado Springs’ intention to wheel water through SDS to other El Paso County communities and to sell excess capacity in the oversized pipeline at the base of Pueblo Dam. The two sides staged frequent caucuses to discuss the finer points of the contract, but made little progress.
Late in the day, Reclamation Area Manager Michael Collins presented a proposal that would have allowed SDS participants to build an oversized pipeline from a new North Outlet Works to the point where Pueblo West would tap into it. The capacity of the line needed by SDS, 96 million gallons per day, would be retained by participants, while Reclamation would discount its rate for combined storage and conveyance by the amount of excess capacity it could sell in the North Outlet Works. Reclamation proposed a $75 per acre-foot fee for storage and conveyance — $25 less than the previous combined offer — plus the unspecified discount. It also stuck with its offer of $50 per acre-foot for exchange. The rates would increase by 3.08 percent annually…
At a May negotiating session, Colorado Springs proposed to sell the excess capacity in the line to future users as a way to pay for it. Colorado Springs also wants to pay just $17.35 per acre-foot, the same rate as the Pueblo Board of Water Works pays under a 25-year contract signed in 2000, with an annual increase of 1.79 percent. “At the next meeting, we’d like to hear why our proposal is unreasonable,” Fredell said.
Colorado Springs hired Joe Hall, a former Bureau of Reclamation area manager, to analyze some documents which Reclamation provided to justify its $50 per acre-foot rates. Hall said the basis for the rates is “confusing and inconsistent,” since it deals with some policies that are almost 30 years old and which apply to sales of former agricultural water to cities, rather than use of in-basin water rights. “I’m not saying your studies and analyses are bunk,” Hall said. “They are just not appropriate to what we’re trying to do here.”
Collins explained that federal laws give Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar broad concessions to set rates, and did not attempt to argue the basis with the Colorado Springs team. “We have some concerns about what’s been said,” he said. Reclamation will continue to control the excess capacity of the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project, Collins added.
The next session was set for July 15-16 in Fountain.
More SDS coverage from Chris Woodka writing for The Pueblo Chieftain. From the article:
Reclamation area Manager Micheal Collins made it clear at the beginning of Tuesday’s negotiating session that the record of decision, along with the EIS, would not be reopened. “We will not explore the record of decision conditions or the commitments that are tied to SDS,” Collins said in his opening remarks…
“Our belief is that there are important effects of the SDS project that have not been adequately addressed in the EIS or various other permits,” Jane Rawlings, assistant publisher of The Chieftain, told Reclamation during SDS contract negotiations on Tuesday. “These include water quantity, flooding, sedimentation issues and water quality issues including biological and mineral levels.”[...]
Rawlings said some of the impacts which have not been measured include lower levels at Lake Pueblo because of heightened use of SDS, the removal of the stormwater enterprise by the Colorado Springs City Council and the concept of selling excess capacity in the SDS pipeline. “Today, I challenge you, the Bureau of Reclamation, to use this negotiation process to think outside the box and consider the citizens — the people — who pay your salaries in Southeastern Colorado,” Rawlings said. “We believe you need a supplemental EIS to adequately address these vitally important issues.”
Runoff news
June 15, 2010
From CBS4Denver.com:
Greeley and Weld County crews are digging a ditch to divert water that has burst through the banks of the Poudre (POO’-der) River…Water levels were expected to drop Tuesday but a flood warning is in effect through early Wednesday morning.
